J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai (ジャッカー電撃隊,Jakkā Dengekitai, translated into English as J.A.K.Q. Blitzkrieg Squad) is the second Sentai series. It aired from April 9 to December 24, 1977. Unlike most of the other Sentai which start out with a team of 5 members, the JAKQ team started out with only 4. A fifth member (Big One) appeared in episode 23. J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai was not nearly as popular as Gorenger, only running for 35 episodes. J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai is the second and final Sentai created by Shotaro Ishinomori.

J.A.K.Q. or JAKQ comes from Jack, Ace, King, Queen. The J.A.K.Q. team members are named after playing cards. Their leader goes by the code name of "Joker".

There are no giant monsters or giant robots to fight them in J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai. CRIME uses human sized monsters assisted by masked soldiers called Crimers. CRIME also has bat-winged aircraft called Devil Sharks.

JAKQ was the final Sentai series to use only the Sentai name. Afterwards the name "Super Sentai" was used.

Contents

As a Super Sentai

JAKQ was the final Sentai series to use only the "Sentai" name. Battle Fever J was the first series to use the "Super Sentai" name. Prior to the 1995 series Ohranger, JAKQ and Goranger were not recognized as "Super Sentai" series. During episode 0 of the 1989 series Turboranger, Battle Fever J was introduced as the first Super Sentai. Toei's announcement of Ohranger as the 19th Super Sentai series signaled the inclusion of Goranger and JAKQ as Super Sentai series.

It should be noted that even if Goranger and JAKQ were not labelled as Super Sentai during the time that term was introduced in Sun Vulcan's run in 1981, AkaRanger and Spade Ace were part of an official Red Warrior picture.

Although Choujuu Sentai Liveman was officially treated as the tenth Super Sentai show at the time, there was a VHS released at the time of Choushinsei Flashman that had all of the Super Sentai openings, including Goranger's and JAKQ's. Also, during Gosei Sentai Dairanger in 1993, the term "Cho Seiki Zen Sentai" (Super Century All Sentai) was coined as an umbrella term for both, Super Sentai and the Ishinomori shows. It was later dropped in Mirai Sentai Timeranger's run back in 2000 and declared Goranger and JAKQ as part of the Super Sentai franchise.

Development

After the massive success of Himitsu Sentai Gorenger, Toei and Ishinomori Productions decided to work together on another team show. However instead of following Gorenger's formula to a tee, the series went in a different direction: influence by crime, police and spy shows, they decided to go with a harder-approached series where humans were transformed into cyborgs and fought against an international criminal organization. The first title for the series was Dengeki Sentai Grossbomber, then Kagaku Tokusoutai Borg Hunter before settling on J.A.K.Q. Dengekitai; however elements of the second name remain with the original Japanese name of group ISISS: Kokusai Kagaku Tokusoutai. The series took advantage of many of the popular elements within Japanese pop culture at the time, including supercars and spy shows as elements within the early episodes hoping for success.

However when the show failed to find ratings, a period of retooling began to emerge that would change the show completely. More kid elements were introduced to make it similar to Gorenger as well as more "kid-plot episodes" were written from the thirteenth episode. One idea for a complete overhaul involved introducing a being known as "Empirian", a man from the future who controlled CRIME behind the scenes who was pursued by another future man named "Page One" which would join the team. While the concept was not quite used due to difference of opinions on the current direction of the world, a new "leader" was still brought to the team in the form of Big One, portrayed by Hiroshi Miyauchi after working on fellow Ishinomori series Kaiketsu Zubat; the show was completely overhauled and expected to have big success. However the ratings didn't improve and the show ultimately was cancelled, becoming the shortest Sentai series with the worst ratings and potentially bringing an end to costumed team shows...until a unique fluke occurred over a year later.

Plot

The JAKQ team.

The JAKQ team (untransformed).

Iron Claw is the "Crime Czar" of a global criminal empire known simply as "Crime". With a network of wealthy and influential sympathizers and employing an army of faceless, leather- masked thugs (Crimers) and cyborg/robot assassins, "Crime" seeks to become the most powerful mafia organization in the world.

To combat this threat, INTERPOL organizes a special taskforce to spearhead the efforts to bring Crime to justice. Based in New York, ISSIS (International Science Special Investigation Squad [Kokusai Kagaku Tokusou Tai]) begins to organize its forces around the world to battle Crime. Tokyo ISSIS branch commander, Kujirai Daisuke, proposes a radical experiment to aid his forces in Japan. Taking the codename “Joker”, he recruits four young test subjects to undergo his cyborg enhancement project – multitalented athlete and Olympic Gold medalist Goro Sakurai, disgraced Junior Walter Weight Champion boxer Ryu Azuma, critically injured Policewoman Karen Mizuki and clinically dead and cryogenically sustained oceanographer Bunta Daichi. Surgically altered and given various energy manipulation powers and bionic enhancements, the four youths begin their mission to destroy Crime as the crime-busting quartet code-named "JAKQ – Dengekitai". Later on, uber cyborg and master of disguise Sokichi Banba is added to the team to strengthen their number and step up their attack on Crime.

Uniquely, J.A.K.Q. shares it's distinction of having a four-man team with Abaranger; however things get more complicated from there. Although J.A.K.Q. starts with four, Big One is considered a core Ranger and not an extra thus making their "five" a general five-man team by the end. In Abaranger's case, the series appears to start with three, but Asuka (AbareBlack) is around from the beginning and just doesn't use his power until some time in. Further, the fifth for this season (AbareKiller) is treated as a "sixth-ranger", even though he is technically the fifth like Big One.

This is the only series to share an epithet with another Sentai: the "Dengeki" of "Dengekitai" is the exact same as the "Dengeki" of Dengeki Sentai Changeman.

This is one of four teams to not have "Sentai" in their name but the only one of the four to have another designation to refer to them as a team. (the 'tai' ending is the same as that of 'sentai', thus them being "Dengekitai" makes them "the Blitzkreig Squadron" instead of "Battle Squadron" like all those who use "Sentai")

This series was originally called Dengeki Sentai Crossbonger (Blitzkrieg Squadron Crossbonger) and Kagaku Tokusou-tai Borghunter (Science Special Team Borghunter). The Dengeki and Kagaku titles would later be used for Dengeki Sentai Changeman and Kagaku Sentai Dynaman. [1]

J.A.K.Q was canceled for 9.8% ratings and it has 35 episodes.

in 1978, J.A.K.Q is the first Sentai show to be aired in the Philippines under the name "Lucky Aces" on RPN.